In the Aug/Sept issue of MaryJanesFarm, “The Experiment” (on newsstands July 14), we led you here to my daily journal for a chance to win a free copy of a wonderful book, Secret Garden: An Inky Treasure Hunt and Colouring Book by Johanna Basford, featured in our “Farmgirl Finds” section that has sold more than a million copies worldwide. Tumble down the rabbit hole into an inky black-and-white wonderland in Secret Garden. This interactive activity book takes you on a ramble through a secret garden created in beautifully detailed pen-and-ink illustrations, sheltering all kinds of tiny creatures just waiting to be found and brought to life through coloring.

For a chance to win a copy of Secret Garden, along with a box of 24 Prismacolor Colored Pencils and a Prismacolor Premier Pencil Sharpener, tell me one thing you enjoy about MaryJanesFarm in the comments below. We’ll toss your name into a hat and draw one lucky winner in mid-September, when the Aug/Sept issue expires on newsstands. Stay tuned for more magazine-related giveaways!

If you’re not yet a subscriber to MaryJanesFarm, subscribe here for only$19.95/year.

In the Aug/Sept issue of MaryJanesFarm, “The Experiment” (on newsstands July 14), we led you here to my daily journal for a chance to win a free sampling of Kuaiwi Farm’s products featured in our “Every Woman Has a Story” section. Kuaiwi Farm is a five-acre organic farm in Hawaii, where owner Una Greenaway grows Kona coffee, macadamia nuts, cacao, bananas, avocados, pineapple, oranges, lemons, limes, passion fruit, and more. I didn’t get a chance to meet Una in person, but for my 62nd b-day and Mother’s Day this past year, my daughter surprised me with tickets to Kona for just the two of us. Visiting Kona was life-changing for me, especially because now I’m hooked on Kona coffee and fresh macadamia nuts:) It’s time for me to share my newfound joy in life.

For a chance to win a 16-oz bag of Kuaiwi Farm’s Kona Old Style Medium Roast Organic Coffee AND an 8-oz bag of her Raw Macadamia Nuts, tell me about a woman farmer you know (or know of) and why you admire her in the comments below. I’ll toss your name in a hat and draw one lucky winner in mid-September, when the Aug/Sept issue expires on newsstands. Stay tuned for more magazine-related giveaways!

If you’re not yet a subscriber to my magazine, MaryJanesFarm, subscribe here for justonly $19.95 a year:)

Amazon now offers goats for rent to help with your yard chores. The service, launched in late March and currently testing in the Seattle market, falls under the lawn and garden section in Amazon’s Home Services and is called Hire a Goat Grazer.

goats on the hillside via rentaruminant.com

Customers interested in this eco-friendly service are asked to answer a few questions, then Amazon sends an e-mail with estimated prices and times available for service. Seattle-based company Rent-A-Ruminent then delivers goats to your home and sets up fencing and a water source for them while they lunch.

goats enjoying lunch via rentaruminant.com

Goat owner Tammy Dunakin says the goats will immediately begin to eat most of what’s in their path, and what they leave behind, she will clear herself. Many of Tammy’s furry crew are rescue goats, and she takes good care of them. Her original herd of 10 goats has now grown to 120. Tammy’s goats are often seen clearing foliage along Seattle interstates, and Seattle City Light uses them to clear terrain that would otherwise be too dangerous for workers or machinery. Amazon jokes on its website that some droppings will probably be left behind as the goats graze and customers are encouraged to keep the fertilizer as a gift.

All proceeds (minus shipping and packing) will benefit www.firstbook.org, a non-profit that provides new books to children from low-income families throughout the U.S. and Canada.

Here’s how:

MaryJane will post a photo of the prop and its cost here along with a few details as to its condition. The first person to call the farm and talk with Brian, 208-882-6819, becomes the new owner of a little bit of herstory. Shipping will be either USPS or UPS, our choice. No returns.